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Nippon
Basic Geography Nippon is an archipelago east of the continent made up of seven larger islands and many smaller ones. The islands are volcanic and each is dominated by a mighty peak, with the exception of the largest island that possesses two significant mountains. Much of the land is rugged hills and valleys, with thick forests. Nippon is much less densely populated than either Koguryo or Shang and only about half of the arable land is under cultivation. A majority of the population are cultivators, living in small settlements. Each of the large mountains hosts a fortress monastery, while the pilgrimage industry supports service-oriented villages established in the foothills. The only city worth the title is the de-facto capital, the sacred city of Kyo. Kyo is built in the foothills around the greatest of the mountain monasteries, at the southernmost mountain of the largest island. Kyo is a sprawling urban center, choked with shrines, inns and craft workshops. Politics and History Nippon is not politically united, like Shang or Koguryo, but divided among many feudal lords. Warrior clans have estates throughout the countryside, collecting dues from surrounding villages of enserfed peasants. In turn, the warrior clans provide protection from bandits, beasts, yokai from the forest and rival clans. Some peasants live outside the feudal serfdom system, but they have a difficult time fending for themselves. Most of the warrior clans have rather small territories, but occasionally a skilled or ambitious warlord conquers an entire island. These larger territories tend not to last, as they are typically divided between family members in succession disputes. The mountain fortress temples exist separate from the society of villages and warrior clans. The monasteries and nunneries each worship their own deity, one for each mountain. In addition to their religious function, monasteries contain many non-clerical personnel that carry out essential functions. Both the monasteries and the villages in the mountain foothills are under the authority of their respective abbot or abbess. Though the single most powerful political authorities, the abbots' power does not extend beyond the monasteries. Still, the monasteries are revered by the people at large and only a dangerously ambitious lord would attempt to encroach upon them. Society Most of the population are serfs, tending the fields of samurai landlords in exchange for their protection. Compared to most Shang peasants, they are poor folk without much opportunity to seek greener pastures. Compared to Koguryo slaves, they cannot be bought and sold and have the right to demand protection from their lords. The freeborn peasantry live in marginal areas closer to the forest and in the hills. Free peasants must band together for their own defense, to protect themselves from bandits, yokai and other dangers. Few are successful. Townspeople that live and work in the settlements surrounding the monasteries are free, answering only to the representatives of the abbot. Armed monks keep the peace and uphold the law within the monastery districts. The warrior clans are based in estates, sometimes extensive fortress compounds made of earthworks and timber, and have a complex internal hierarchy. Lower ranking members of the clan seek to prove themselves in battle to win rewards and honors from their daimyo. Intra-clan competition sometimes boils over into coups or fratricidal civil wars. Small scale war between clans is endemic, but they just as often form alliances and intermarry. The monasteries and nunneries accept initiates from all walks of life. Anyone who reaches the monastery, goes through novice training and takes their vows can join their ranks. The monks spend their days in contemplation, study, manual labor to upkeep the monastery and prayer to the gods of the mountains. A select group of monks in each monastery also engage in military training. While the warrior monks never leave the territory of the monasteries, monastery trained, wondering yamabushi right wrongs in the name of their gods and recruit for their orders throughout the land. Military Military organization is essentially feudal. The backbone of Nipponese military forces are the samurai of the clans. They fight on horseback, in rather heavy armor with long, asymmetrical bows as their primary weapons and swords (tachi) as sidearms. Although the most formidable warriors on the battlefield, they are outnumbered by their attendants. Samurai typically have between three and five attendants, but particularly wealthy and powerful ones may have dozens. Attendants fight on foot with a variety of polearms, bows and swords. Every clan procures or manufactures its own equipment and trains its own warriors, resulting in a force more irregular than that of Shang or Koguryo. Field armies tend to be small, with groups of warriors acting independently rather than in large formation. Monasteries operate their own armies of warrior monks and nuns. These forces are geared toward defensive warfare and contain few cavalry. Their primary arms are the naginata and bow, but the extensive smithies and armories of the monastery fortresses provide them with a wide variety of weapons. Warrior monks are well armored, but more lightly than the mounted samurai. The monastery armies are the most well trained, best equipped and organized forces in Nippon. They could conquer the surrounding warlords if they so chose, but their oaths prevent them from marching away from their monasteries except in times when crisis threatens all of Nippon. In case of such a crisis (or as an ultimate defensive measure) the two monasteries on the largest island posses an arsenal of matchlock firearms and grenades. These are a closely guarded secret, but legends persist of the monks using thundering weapons in a battle to defend the islands from invaders centuries ago. Religion Religion is more important to Nippon than Shang or Koguryo, more comparable to the active role religion plays in the Maurya Realms. At a local level, religion is like animistic Shinto. Shrines exist throughout the land to local kami, ancestors and sometimes yokai. They are managed by priests and miko, who direct the worship of commoners and accept donations from samurai. The mountain monasteries worship much more powerful deities and have a more complex religion. Each mountain has its own god, represented in two forms: a totemic animal and a mighty hero. Their sacred texts are epic tales of the god's heroism in settling the land of Nippon and making it habitable for humans. They style themselves as the teachers and protectors of the Nipponese. There are no records of the mountain gods manifesting in avatars or possessing their servants, unlike the lower kami. Still, the common people believe that experienced monks command great esoteric powers.